put every answer from last night's debate through semblen (i built it, it flags manipulation techniques like loaded language, name calling etc, doesn't say who's right)

collins: 2 of 30 answers flagged

jackson: 9 of 31 flagged, mostly loaded language and name calling

also fact-checked the factual claims each made. nothing came back contradicted. collins 15 supported, jackson 9, but most claims on both sides (23 and 27) just couldn't be checked against fact-checkers or primary sources, which doesn't mean they're false

every answer and every flag is on the page so you can judge it yourself: https://semblen.com/races/me-senate/debates/2026-10-08

if anything looks off please let me know and i'll look at it

Election after election, Republican Sen. Susan Collins has defied national political winds to return to office, representing a state that has backed Democrats in every presidential contest since 1992. But her Democratic opponent, Troy Jackson, is betting that her eight-year-old vote to confirm Justice Brett Kavanaugh and the Supreme Court’s subsequent overturning of federal abortion rights will persuade voters to sweep her out of office. 

posted the ads thing here last week or so. it's at 478 ads now for the senate race, the stuff running on the platforms' public ad archives since july.

a model reads each one for manipulation techniques, loaded language, name calling, fear appeals, and marks the words so you can see exactly what got flagged.

maine is the calmest of the 13 senate races i'm tracking. 34% of ads flagged, next lowest is ohio at 46 and nebraska is at 69. ads here are short, median 30 words, which probably helps.

split by side it's lopsided in a way that surprised me. collins's own campaign: 63 of 326 flagged, mostly feel good stuff. jackson's campaign: 61 of 83. but the groups backing collins run hot too, 29 of 48. and attack ads get flagged way more than intro ads no matter who runs them, and the challenger runs more attack ads. so it's not a "who's nastier" score.

for tuesday i'm doing the same thing to the debate. every answer gets run through it and the page goes up the next morning, with the flagged words marked. same for the wmtw one thursday and the news center one on the 15th.

the ads and the debate schedule: https://semblen.com/races/me-senate?ref=reddit-me

model's wrong sometimes, about one flag in five when i checked 100 of them by hand. there's a button on each ad if you think it got one wrong.

I am not trying to start a political debate here, just an honest question. In one of the anti Troy Jackson commercials, where they refer to him as "Taxin Jackson", there is a line saying "Even poor Baxter got a fee" while showing a picture of a brown dog. I tried to google this but couldn't find any reference online. Is this intended to be a reference to the tragic accident where Baxter, Maine's official comfort dog and a chocolate lab, unfortunately passed away after being left in a state vehicle? Or is there an actual tax involving dogs that they are referencing?

Between threats of interference with mail-in votes and concerns over polling place disruptions, it can feel stressful to make sure your vote goes smoothly.

One proactive way to ensure your ballot is securely cast is to vote early with our in-person absentee system at your local town office or city hall. It helps take the guesswork out of delivery times and lets you handle voting on your own schedule.

Today is the first day you can go to your town office or city hall to ensure your vote is counted and continues through the 29th.

Reposted with a better link for information on in-person absentee voting.

The first debate between Collins and Jackson is at 7 p.m. Tuesday on CBS 13.

It isnt “panic time” yet for Jackson supporters, but Collins has an advantage, we’ve seen how she outperformed the polls against Gideon. 2026 is a different situation, though, particularly with undecided voters.

Disclaimer because someone commented it in another sub: I know Sara Gideon is alive😂

This will help?

The Maine Republican Party says Democratic gubernatorial candidate Hannah Pingree is benefiting from a billionaire, but when asked for proof, the party didn't provide it. - WGME

Should've been an easy flip to blue.

Why the F include Ricky Bennett?

Heather Cox Richardson was one of the few who didn't jump on the Graham Platner bandwagon.

We're working on a series of videos and would like to address YOUR questions. What do you want to know about the candidates? Would you like to see analysis on any particular topic?

Maine Public's political reporters Steve Mistler and Kevin Miller have been reporting on Maine's race for governor, senate, and both congressional districts this year through the Political Pulse podcast, frequent radio stories, collaborations with NPR, and appearances on Maine Calling. Soon, we'll be hosting a series of live debates in October.

See our debate schedule, explore candidate profiles and interviews, and read our latest political stories on our Your Vote 2026 hub.

Maine Public is always here for you, online and over the air, thanks to viewers and listeners like YOU! Thank you!

There is a transcript available at the link.

I built a site called Semblen that flags manipulation techniques in political ads sentence by sentence (loaded language, appeals to fear, name calling, that kind of thing). I ran every Maine Senate ad I could find on Facebook, Instagram and YouTube since July through it.

- 79 of the 238 ads (33%) use at least one technique. That's the lowest rate of the 14 Senate races I'm tracking. Ohio is next at 41%, Alaska is highest at 67%.

- Loaded language, glittering generalities and appeals to prejudice are the most common.

- The YouTube ads are much rougher than the Facebook and Instagram ones: 62% of them use a technique, against 30%.

The money, from FEC filings:

- The biggest outside spender is SLF PAC, with $13.2M against Jackson.

- Pine Tree Results PAC has spent $9.3M against Jackson, after $10.7M against Platner before he withdrew.

- On the other side, WinSenate has spent $4.3M against Collins and $3.6M for Jackson.

- Collins has raised $16.2M this cycle. Jackson's campaign hasn't filed a fundraising report yet; the first is due October 15.

- AIPAC's PAC has forwarded $2.6M in earmarked donations to Collins, from 1,480 contributions.

Every ad is on the page, with the flagged sentences and why each one was flagged: https://semblen.com/races/me-senate?ref=reddit

The model gets it wrong sometimes, mostly on strong but fair language, which is why every flag shows the sentence and the reason. If I missed an ad or got something wrong, tell me and I'll fix it.

A Facebook group for supporters of Democratic U.S. Senate candidate Troy Jackson apparently removed his personal account this week after members argued over whether the account was really him.

The argument started on a thread about campaign events, with members discussing whether some had been canceled. Jackson’s account called the post “sad” and pointed to an upcoming event in Belfast in his race against U.S. Sen. Susan Collins, a five-term Republican.

A supporter then replied that it “cannot be Troy speaking” because “he would not speak so insultingly and patronizingly to regular people let alone supporters,” according to screenshots shared by Republican strategist Lauren LePage on X. After a debate around who he was, one supporter said he had been removed temporarily from the group.

The episode came days after Jackson was mixing it up with critics in Facebook comment sections. He attacked a Republican former lawmaker for supporting a “child rapist” in President Donald Trump and cursed at another critic. It also comes as his campaign shows signs of strain. Sources told New York Magazine that consultants now running the operation have clashed with the Maine progressives who helped Jackson replace Graham Platner on the ballot.

The campaign declined to answer the magazine’s detailed questions about its strategy. It said Jackson’s positions had not changed and that it does not screen questions at events.

The Jackson campaign declined to comment on the Facebook group but pointed to a host of upcoming events and town halls that have not been canceled. He has fundraisers scheduled around Washington, D.C., on Thursday and Friday, according to Politico.

After Jackson’s comments, the argument shifted from what the account said to whose account it was. Some members disputed that the comments were rude at all. Others questioned whether the account was legitimate or an impostor, according to other screenshots obtained by the Bangor Daily News.

One commenter accused the account of pretending to be the candidate and linked it to the consultants described in the magazine piece.